


An Imperial in Skyrim

by SeigePhoenix



Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Genre: Alternate Timelines, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Gen, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-18
Updated: 2019-04-18
Packaged: 2020-01-15 22:44:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,732
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18508594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SeigePhoenix/pseuds/SeigePhoenix
Summary: It was supposed to be a visit with family to get away from trouble.  Aurelia Tullius should've known better than to think trouble wouldn't find her.  From landing in the middle of an ambush to finding out she's one of the last Dragonborn, she reigns supreme as Queen of Trouble.The fic follows Aurelia and her bodyguard Roskar Bonebreaker as they travel through Skyrim.





	An Imperial in Skyrim

**Author's Note:**

> I'm using my own headcanons and my own timeline for the fic. ^^

The Travels of an Imperial in Skyrim.

Aurelia knew something was amiss as she sat on a bench in the small village. She had paused to catch her breath and a small snack before she pressed further into Skyrim. The air was far more crisp than she was used to. Her uncle had not been joking when he wrote to them and informed them Skyrim was cold. Cold didn't begin to describe it, her teeth rattled in her head as she shivered. The wagon driver told her they were in the warm season, it took everything in her to ask if the man was alright in the head. She sighed and kept her silence, she knew the man would likely complain Cyrodil was too hot. Skyrim was just too cold for her blood. She'd heard rumors but experiencing it firsthand just made her want to go back. Yet, she knew going back wasn't an option. Not for a good while.

That scuffle with the local Thieves Guild had caused one headache after another. The man had tried to steal her coin purse in broad daylight, and had fumbled like a fool. Aurelia had smacked his hand and brought him to the ground for the guards to arrest. She hadn't known the local magistrate was in their pocket until her family started getting harassed. She'd been given a bogus trial and made to pay a steep fine, her family had experienced livestock going missing and crops laid to waste. Her mother sent her to Skyrim to fight in the army with her uncle while they retreated to their main estate in Cryodil. Irritation rose anew whenever she thought about it. The guild should have screened their recruits better, if he'd been _that_ easy to catch. Aurelia huffed at the memory and watched her breath form into a cloud. The wind dissipated it as it blew over her. She looked around the quiet village, that feeling of something was off wedged in the back of her mind. She finished her small ration pack and stood.

A farmer told her which road to take before he quickly retreated to his home, almost as if he was afraid. Aurelia thought it odd that not even the farmers were out tending their fields. Not a single one was out, that just seemed too strange to her. Suspicion clouded her mind but she assured herself she was just imagining things. The customs of Skyrim were different than what she was used to was all. Mayhap she came during a holiday or something.

The dried mud crackled beneath her boots as she headed further up the road. She enjoyed looking at the scenery. It was far more green and the smell of evergreen was exotic to her. The hint of danger in the air sent a small charge along her blood. Something was about to happen, she felt it in her soul. Aurelia wasn't one to shy away from danger. A large squad of soldiers in blue approached the road from her left. Blue? Aurelia's eyes narrowed as she wracked her brain to think about what her uncle said about that. As she heard the familiar battle cry of the Imperials it hit her with the force of a war hammer. _Stormcloaks!_ She scrambled backwards, unsheathing the daggers she preferred to use, preparing to fight. She was surprised when she felt the blow to her neck and the world went black. Her daggers fell as her grip slackened.

Aurelia woke up to the swaying of a wagon. Her head pulsed in pain from the wound at the back of her skull. Her eyes widened in dismay as she saw the Stormcloak uniforms all around her. “What the hell do you think you're doing!? I demand you release me this instant!” She yelled at the driver in her native tongue. Not the common language of Skyrim. The driver didn't understand her since he told her to sit down and shut up. “Rebel scum? I'll have your head you sad sack of horse shit!” The other men watched in amazement as she blasted the driver with a barrage of insults in the native tongue of Cyrodil. She never stopped, not even when he threatened to slit her throat. Even bound she was no slouch and had given him a bruise to the side of his head from a blow. The driver gave up and settled for an easier solution, he gagged her.

“Blessed Talos but you need to hold your tongue.” She shot daggers at him and kicked at his legs which earned her a swift slap to her cheek. She snarled at him around the gag and slammed her bound fists into his groin. A lock of her hair fell over her face as she glared at the man with his face twisted in pain. She'd like to see him try it again.

“Oi!” The blond Nord protested as the driver raised his hand again. Aurelia settled back against the wagon, settling for glaring at his back. He spat at her feet and sat back in the wagon seat for their journey to Helgen. Her eyebrow twitched and she gave him a half hearted kick to the back of his seat. The others in the wagon watched her in amazement as she fought viciously with the driver. The blonde Nord spoke quietly to her and the other man, a horse thief by what she gathered. “That is Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak.”

 _Oh. Oh no._ Aurelia knew they were destined for the executioner block. Her uncle had orders out for Ulfric's capture and death. If she was imprisoned with him, that meant only one thing. They didn't know who she was and that she was going to be executed as a traitor. Her! A proud Legate in the Imperial Army in Cyrodil. She could only imagine her mother's reaction as she received the box that would contain her remains and wished there was a way out. She cursed her temper and quick tongue as they rolled into Helgen. The Nord shared a story about the town but Aurelia focused on the group of Imperial soldiers.

They headed in and Aurelia saw her uncle. She cursed the gag in her mouth. Desperation set it as he rode away from the entrance to the village on his horse. Her eyes pleaded with him to come back but the gag was set and tight. The wagon swayed to a stop and she got down gingerly. The guard that took everyone's name untied the gag to get hers. She moved her jaw to ease the stiffness there, the satisfying crack as she popped it made the others stare at her. He shook his head and stepped back with his clipboard.

“What is your name prisoner?” He had kind eyes, the thought went through her mind before she opened her mouth. Kind eyes or not, that she was lumped in with these rebels pissed her off.

“My name is Aurelia Tullius. Legate in the Imperial Army. Niece to General Tullius.” A wave of shocked gasps went through the crowd. Swiftly subdued by the captain. The Stormcloaks stared at her in shock as she spoke with confidence.

“Likely story. We would've known he had family visiting. He hasn't said a word to us.” Aurelia glared at the captain. She wasn't going to go down without a fight by the Divines. Yet, she knew there was no way out. The Captain spoke, no soldier would dare go against her. That was how it was. Aurelia took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders.

“Then I dare you to send my remains to General Tullius upon my execution. And may _yours_ be as swift as mine is this day.” The chill went through all the soldiers that day as she spoke. The Captain snapped at her to join the others and she went to them with her head held high. She was second to the executioner's block, and felt the fear tighten in her belly. She truly didn't want to die. She didn't deserve the fate she was being handed. Aurelia walked with her head held high and heard an outraged yell from the crowd. She turned as she recognized the voice of her uncle. Aurelia swore he'd ridden away from the village but perhaps he'd merely gone to the stables.

“What in the Divines’ name is my _niece_ doing up there!?” Aurelia resisted the urge to turn and smirk at the Captain as General Tullius headed towards the block. Aurelia didn't get to savor the victory. With a deafening roar the earth shook as a giant dragon with scales as dark as pitch landed on the Tower. Aurelia met his blazing red eyes and felt a trickle of fear and awareness slide down her spine. The dragon let out an ear splitting roar and sent the world into chaos. She ran to a watchtower, half blind because of the dust and dirt.

“Well, well. General Tullius's niece. A good bargaining chip.” Aurelia turned at the voice and her legs bunched as she prepared to flee. “You're coming with us.” Ulfric told her as he grabbed her collar. She met his victorious face with defiance.

“Like hell I will.” She snarled at him in the common tongue.

“So you do speak our tongue here. Good. That will come in handy. First we need to escape.” He released her and she glared at the Nords as they conversed in their own native tongue. Without realizing she could understand it. She spoke it with an atrocious accent but she understood it well enough, and her fate was not to be kind.

 _If they think I'll go quietly then they are in for a rude awakening. I didn't escape one executioner to go quietly with another._ Aurelia headed up the stairs and barely dodged the blast of rock as the dragon burst through. She saw her chance. Aurelia ran and leapt towards the burning house next door. She heard the yells behind her as she landed and rolled.

“Oh boy. Oww.” She staggered to her feet and jumped down from the second story, ignoring the blisters on her feet. She'd find a temple soon and see about getting them taken care of. The small village was in complete chaos. Hadvar escorted a young boy to cover as he finally noticed her.

“By the Divines, you survived.” She tilted her chin stubbornly as if daring him to argue with her. “We need to escape. Quickly.” She arched an eyebrow but rolled her eyes and followed. He was armed she was not. She figured she was safest with him as they escaped. He had tried to argue her case with that Imperial Captain. He was her best bet to escape. Then she would take great pleasure in escaping and going to Solitude. Her uncle had to get out, she refused to believe he would succumb to this damned dragon. She followed Hadvar across the village, keeping to the walls to stay out of sight.

“Ralof you damned traitor!” The two men had their confrontation in the middle of the wide street with zero cover. Aurelia rushed past them into the keep. They could tempt fate all they wanted, _she_ was going to choose life. She remembered a lot of them had underground passages. It was her best bet as that dragon ravaged Helgen, at the least she could hide out until it left. She ducked into the keep and searched for a small knife or something to cut the bindings off her hands.

“Here. I'll cut them off.” Aurelia whirled around, her eyes narrowed as Hadvar stood behind her. He sighed and held out his hand to her. “I would like to apologize. For not believing you.” She eased over to him and held up her hands. His knife sliced through the rope easily enough and she massaged her wrists. The rope had rubbed her skin raw from her jump and subsequent running away. The sting reminded her of the whole ordeal and she glanced away from the marks.

“There may be some armor in here that should fit. It would be better than those.” He motioned towards the prisoner rags and she felt that frustration anew. All of her things were gone. Her favorite armor, favorite weapons, all gone. She took a deep breath and went to search the chests. She found some armor and easily slipped it on. The Imperial armor was slightly heavier than she was used to, but it was serviceable enough. She turned and saw Hadvar had his back to her. It was comical that he'd been a gentleman and turned while she changed. Amusement had a grin tugging at her lips.

“There was a passage that led out under the keep. Last I remember. It's better than staying with the dragon. We can stick together and escape.” She sighed and looked over at him. He seemed hesitant to speak with her, and she had to get this over with.

“Look. I don't hold anything against you. You were following orders. I get that. I'll make sure my uncle does as well. Are you sure we can escape this way?” He nodded and she saw what looked like relief pass over his face at her words. She resisted the urge to add in a ‘maybe’ but decided to spare the man. He had at least offered a token protest to the captain before she laid down the law. They headed further into the keep, and Aurelia drew the sword she'd found along the wall. She was used to daggers but was no slouch with any weapon. The Imperial Army made sure their trainees could wield any weapon before they let them onto a battlefield. The Stormcloaks fell to her blade, much to Hadvar's surprise.

“I told you. I'm a Legate in the Imperial Army. I was trained extensively just as you were.” She wiped the blade clean and slid it back into the sheath. They headed further into the keep, past the torture room. Aurelia did not agree with torture, it was too close to what the Thalmor did. If there was one thing she hated most in the world it was the Thalmor. She just kept her opinion to herself, given the state of affairs between her people and the elves.

They reached the caverns below Helgen, and Aurelia paused. She knew that caves were often the home of spiders. Spiders were her phobia. The scuttling on the stones sent ice down her spine. She froze at the entrance to the tunnel, prompting Hadvar to turn around.

“Are you alright?” She squared her shoulders and took a deep breath.

“I'm fine.” She headed down the tunnel despite the growing dread in her stomach. The room opened up and she saw six. Six giant spiders. The blood drained out of her face as she froze in horror. Hadvar moved around her and began killing them. She moved over to him as the last one fell.

“There's one behind you.” She shrieked and jumped at him. He barely caught her as she looked desperately behind her. She realized there was no spider behind them and sent a glare hot enough to smelt ore his way.

“That was cruel. And uncalled for. You must have siblings.”

“A younger brother. How did you guess?” She jumped away from him and dusted her armor off as she refused to meet his eyes. Though she heard the laughter there.

“My older brother would pull the exact same stunt when we were younger.” She informed him as she brushed past him. He merely grinned and followed behind her. The bear posed little problem for them as they snuck past it and out into the Skyrim sunlight.

“Sweet Divines it's good to see sunlight again.” Aurelia sighed as she tilted her head back to back in it.

“We're close to Riverwood. My uncle is the blacksmith there. You can rest up there before you head to Solitude. I'm sure General Tullius is worried about you.” Aurelia nodded and gave him a sly grin.

“Being nice to the milk drinker are we?” He flushed as they headed towards Riverwood. “I'm still confused as to how that's used as an insult here in Skyrim.” They continued as Hadvar tried to explain why the term was an insult for Nords.


End file.
